It has long been a serious problem to conveniently position those confined to wheelchairs for receiving services to their person such as would be performed by a beauty operator, a dentist, or other services which may require the occupant of the wheelchair to be raised, lowered, or tilted in order to effectively perform the intended service. Prior to the advent of wheelchair handling devices, it was necessary to move the occupant of the wheelchair physically by lifting the person to a special positioning chair in order to receive services such as a hair shampoo or dental work. In many cases movement of persons confined to wheelchairs can be quite dangerous in that the injury or impairment which causes confinement to the wheelchair may be seriously aggravated.
As mentioned in my earlier copending patent application (U.S. Pat. No. 4,592,695 dated June 3, 1986) several prior art patents are of interest because they relate to the above-mentioned problems. Of these, U.S. Pat. No. 4,227,740 to EAST shows a simple attachment for a wheelchair which allows a wheelchair to be tilted backward so that the occupant can rest or sleep. However, this structure is somewhat light and flimsy and does not instill confidence in the occupant of the wheelchair. Moreover, this device does not have sufficient versatility to accomplish the objects of this invention since it cannot be raised and it may be tilted backward to only one angle, which is about 55 degrees from the vertical. This is not sufficient for the purpose of performing the necessary services to the wheelchair occupant. For maximum convenience in performance of such services the occupant must really be tilted backward about 80 degrees or more. It is also apparent that the device of EAST does not substantially support the wheelchair in the forward direction. Obviously, if one were to lean forward in such a chair, it would tilt forward very quickly, resulting in possible injury to the occupant. It is also readily apparent that this device does not provide the feature which enables lifting the wheelchair to a height which is convenient for performance of the services needed. It is further obvious that this device requires modification to the wheelchair and that it is not intended for universal use with a standard wheelchair.
A second prior art patent of interest is U.S. Pat. No. 4,158,524 to SERAFIN. This patent shows a platform for raising a wheelchair from ground level to a higher level, such as a porch. This patent does not contemplate and does not show any structure for securely holding the wheelchair on the platform and tilting the platform through an angle of 45 degrees to 90 degrees as does the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,024,960 to FORSTER shows a large tilting platform for raising one end of a truck or car. However, this platform is considerably larger than would be necessary to hold a wheelchair. Moreover, this patented invention does not contemplate securing anything to the platform while it is being raised and of course does not provide any structure for securing or tilting a wheelchair.
None of the known prior art patents mentioned above contemplate raising and tilting a wheelchair on a platform and securing the wheelchair securely to the platform in order to tilt it through an angle of 45 degrees to 90 degrees for purposes of performing a service to the occupant of a wheelchair.
Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide a lifting and tilting platform with a means attached to the platform for securely holding a wheelchair on the platform, for performing a service to the occupant of a wheelchair without the occupant having to leave his/her wheelchair.
It is another object of this invention to provide a wheelchair handling device which can lift a wheelchair and tilt it backwards through an angle of 45 degrees to 90 degrees, for performing a service to the occupant of a wheelchair.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a lifting and tilting platform for a wheelchair, the platform having a motor-driven mechanism to operate the device.
It is yet another object of this invention to provide a lifting and tilting platform for a wheelchair, the platform being arranged to be simply and quickly operated by the use of convenient hand or foot controls.
It is a still further object of this invention to provide a safe and efficient wheelchair handling device, requiring only one operator, for securely holding a wheelchair and lifting and tilting the wheelchair backwards in order to perform a service to the occupant of a wheelchair.